Together or separate
by Mephistofeles
Summary: Translation. Lauren and Andy felt that they walked away each day more, that hurt them. When your great-grandparents offer to end the pain, it only gets worse. One-shot set at the end of episode 1x13


**AN: NerdyGirl98 asked me to translate the fic, so here it is ... English is not my native language, so any improvement you can make is welcome.**

 **AN': What started as an idea of 156 words to show what could have happened (with much imagination) between the escape of the underground of the main headquarters and the arrival of others to the new temporary headquarters, spread another 5000+. Much conflict between the brothers that staggers between the resolution and the inevitable.**

 **Enjoy.**

 **The only thing that belongs to me is the plot of this story. I hope I have not left much of character or ruined the twins.**

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After the underground headquarters disappeared, the brothers remember arriving with the others before everything went black.

Lauren and Andy opened their eyes to find themselves in a dark room, as their eyes adjusted to the gloom they could see more details of the room. Looking around they saw the door and a cot beyond, a small table, all well-known, looked at each other. They were in their room in the sub, they sighed in relief and smiled.

Lauren dropped "It was just a dream"

The brothers breathed easier, dream or not, had left them exhausted. Each one was thinking about his dream. Andy felt good, of all the times that Fenris had appeared this, although a dream, he had felt _good_. Lauren thought the same thing, but far from happy, she was terrified by the idea of feeling so good, but there was something else ... they felt _complete_

"This is what the Frost said"

Lauren sat down suddenly listening to her brother "Did you talk to the Frost? About us?"

Andy frowned at his sister's disbelief "Not apropos if that's what you think"

"On purpose or you didn't, why?"

"Because nobody in this family wanted to do it, besides it isn't my fault that I can read my mind, she knows what it feels like to be different ..."

Lauren stood up quickly "She? One of the nightmare sisters? Andy is manipulating you, you know "

Andy clenched his fists "Manipulation or not, at least she ... and I do not know what to take away the doubt, she listens to me and appreciates my powers, she along with the rest of the Hellfire club."

Lauren began to walk restlessly "Do you hear what you say? ... Andy the Hellfire club is the same one that attacked all those innocent people in Trask ..."

"They did not look so innocent when they killed Sonya"

The girl stopped short. Andy stood up "Besides it's the same place that hosted our great-grandparents"

"Terrorist great-grandparents"

"Fenris, just like us"

Lauren turned with tears in her eyes "We are not the same. We do not kill innocent people "

Andy looked at her for a moment. "Then why do not you feel that way?"

"What are you talking about?" The girl was confused, there was something wrong with her brother

The boy looked down trying to stay in control "We let all these mutants die every day just to have a different gene, we let everyone we know get hurt and be snatched from us. Why do we do it? Humans hate us and we let them do it while we hide ourselves as cowards! "

The room was shaking with her brother, while she thought about what she said. He approached slowly "Andy, listen. The people behind us are afraid of us and sometimes people do stupid things when they are afraid. Remember when you were little and you sneaked into my room during storms? You looked like a scared little puppy, pale, shaking from head to toe and showing me your big eyes while you said you were there to protect me ... "

Andy breathed and showed a small smile "Yes, you told me I was a brave boy, but I did not have to be afraid, I was just Storm on a mission with the X-men"

Lauren nodded and slowly stroked her younger brother's arms. "Then we spent the rest of the night talking under the blankets and devising plans to help the X-men and so reassure Storm. You see? we were a couple of stupid guys who thought they could help some super heroes to end their problems "

Andy looked her straight in the eyes "But now we can"

Lauren smiled. "Yes, now we can. However attacking all those who are against us will not help "

The boy's gaze hardened "And let them attack us first either"

Lauren sighed "You have to understand to destroy all those that are not to your liking will not make you better than the kids at school"

Andy abruptly walked away "Do you think I do not know ?! I was on the receiving end of his punches for years, I know exactly what it feels like, but what do you expect me to do? Stay here and see how the underground are converted into **that**! "

"No, of course not, but there are more ways to help. Attacking them right and left will only confirm your idea that we are monsters "

The boy Strucker looked at her with a smile without humor "Sorry, but if you have not noticed is what they think of us and if you expect to invite them to eat a rich canned soup to fix problems, let me tell you that they are not left so they will have to settle for a plate of hot water and, if we're lucky, with a little rat to the campfire. After all monsters are not allowed to go to a store to get food "

Lauren narrowed her eyes "Stop saying nonsense, you know what I mean"

Andy waved a hand and turned to his cot, turning his back "I know, but you know scared people also say stupid things"

Frustration, it was the only thing that his brother made him feel lately. He almost missed his 'fan club' as he liked to tell them, at least then his brother was not close to the claws of those telepaths from hell. The name of the happy club fit them perfectly. While she was moving away more and more from her brother, they turned him into her new weapon. Can not you see that they are using it? If the Von Strucker twins had not been in that club, they would not give him a second look.

Andy closed his eyes tightly and blew the nearby lamp "Could you stop talking ?! Holy mutant I already remember why I wanted to get out of this room in the first place! "

Lauren looked at him surprised "I did not say anything, Andy"

Andy opened his eyes surprised and turned slowly "W-what do you say? I-I heard you "

Lauren shook her head "I promise. I did not say a word "

The brothers were silent. And they noticed, the silence, how a place as crowded as the subway was so silent? They both looked around, the same beds, furniture, floor, door even the lamp that had just burst, was now started to panic "Are we dead?"

Lauren could not answer that, she had the same doubt. He looked beyond the door, but there was complete darkness. There was no one to talk to, but his little brother was panicking. No matter how strange he is behaving in the last days he could not bear to see his brother in that state, not again. So he took a firm step forward and squared his shoulders "No, Andy, we're not dead" he bit his lower lip "At least I hope so"

Andy tried to focus on his sister, but he could not. All the voices of his classmates, teachers, even that little voice he had not heard in weeks was there. They were dead, they had to be, there was no explanation other than was making fun of him, how weak he was, how useless he was, so useless that he could not protect anyone, even with powers ... "It can not be happening ..."

Lauren saw her brother crumble on the floor and knelt beside her without thinking "Andy look at me ... Andy ... Andy!"

Andy heard someone say his name, it was not a voice he had heard before, because she had no malice in it. He was distant, but insistent. As he wished his sister were with him, she always knew what to do and what to sister was everything he was not. He was a traveling disaster, destroying everything he touches, even before his powers and yet too weak to help his family. His sister, on the other hand, was someone to trust, always fixing his mistakes and defending him when he had the chance. It was all his fault, they were dead because of him, underground, his grandfather, his sister or shit. What did he do? He let his sister die and now he listened to her in his head too, would soon join the rest and begin to say how useless and pathetic he was ... and he deserved it, if he could not save her she was definitely worse than Campbell.

Lauren was holding back the tears as she watched him lock himself in once more. His thoughts were like a buzzing, but he could feel it, panic self-loathing. They were so strong that he could not take it anymore. He took his face in his hands and approached speaking in a low voice "I'm sorry"

Bam!

Andy blinked confused. He felt as if he had just come out of a nightmare. His muscles tense and his face. He moved his jaw a little and grimaced. He saw his sister's eyes in front of him and he pulled away quickly, he was about to run away when he noticed his tears. First he killed her and now he made her cry, really? What was wrong with him? That slap was well deserved.

Lauren stayed on the floor waiting for her brother to come back from wherever he was. When he saw him approaching as if there was a storm outside he sighed and tried to speak without breaking his voice "Are you-are you okay?"

Andy nodded "Y-yes, and I guess because of the blow you gave me, you too"

Lauren gave a small watery laugh "Yes, thank you"

Andy stood on tiptoe in front of her, but he did not touch her. Could not. He cleared his throat "Yes ... if we're not dead, as you say, where are we?"

Lauren dropped her defeated head "I don't know. But I'm sure we'll find out "

Andy remembered the dream he had before waking up in this place. "You think ... you think we ..." he breathed deeply. "Do you think we're going back to Trask?"

Lauren shook her head in his direction. "Trask? Because what you say?"

Andy squeezed and released his fists "It's just that I had this dream before I woke up ..."

Lauren looked at him solemnly "Fenris" the boy nodded "I also had it ... but what if it was not a dream?"

"Bravo, they noticed"

The brothers jumped at the new voice, looked around frantically looking for the source of this new voice. Suddenly the corridor outside the door lit up and two people could be seen crossing the threshold of the door, from what appeared to be an old house.

The two adults appeared in front of them wearing old-fashioned clothes and hairstyles, with blonde hair and very similar to each other. The recognition shone in the eyes of the minors. It was the Von Strucker twins, their ancestors, the original Fenris and certainly their smiles were more terrifying than their photography could show.

The two pairs of brothers were studied carefully. Andrea crossed her arms "After all this time, did you inherit our magnificent powers? What a waste"

Andy frowned "At least we're still alive ... I think"

Andreas looked at the boy "You have to leave the games. If we are here it is because they finally decided to take Fenris seriously "

"So is. I can not believe it took them so long "Andrea showed them a smug smile" Did not it feel great? "

"It felt right." Upon hearing that, Lauren looked at the side of her brother's face, who looked at her out of the corner of his eye, before looking away in embarrassment. She could not deny the truth, but nothing forces her to admit something that knots her in the stomach. Andy tensed his jaw at the response of his sister, but now was not the time to argue with her. He stood up slowly without looking at her.

The twins saw this intrigued interaction, it was not what they expected, after all they were always so in sync that the revelation of their combined powers, Fenris' revelation, only affirmed what they already knew. They should be together, no matter what. Apparently his great-grandchildren did not think the same and that could be a problem. Andreas huffed annoyed, of course his son would do the only job that he left.

Andrea felt the discomfort of her twin and focused on the children in front of them "Exactly boy, what do you say girl? You can not deny the facts "

Lauren looked at her defiantly. "No, I can not. That's why I refuse to agree with a couple of terrorists "

Andreas raised an eyebrow. "Then why does your brother do it?"

The young Strucker refused to look at each other. Andy turned to see the twins and avoid his sister "Because I'm sick of letting them pass me by"

Andrea smiled complacently "Is that so?" He watched him from head to toe "A boy as weak as you think he can stop the bad guys? That's funny, but if we talk about Fenris that's something else "

Andreas nodded in agreement "Andrea is correct. Your boy, you would not last a minute in the real world, not without your sister, but it seems that she does not think to support you "

Lauren looked at them angrily. "Of course I will! It's my brother would do anything to protect it! "

Andy could feel an indignation and a faith that were not his, could only be Lauren's. This room was a strange place, his great-grandparents were strangers, but to feel the presence of his sister in his own being was not, in fact in this place it was so ... _natural_ , that until now he had not noticed that set of extra feelings that he carried with him. Although if he could, then she too and that made him uncomfortable. He was too used to keeping things. Now that it seemed to be an open book for the only person who could understand him better than anyone, that gave him a confidence he did not have and he felt like a damn mosquito, but for now that would work ... Until his _beloved_ great-grandmother opened his mouth

"We know that you are going to protect it, obviously you need it, but if you can not even accept your destiny, then you do not really support it"

Lauren was fed up with these people who said they were related to her and her brother and how in the world Andy could admire them so much? she stood up angrily "My destiny is not to be a murderer like you, nor a terrorist and Andy's either. So if they are going to continue trying to convince me otherwise they waste their time "

Andrea looked at her amused "We are dead, time is too much for us"

"Besides it is not necessary to convince you of anything, after all the boy is all we need"

"What?" The brothers looked at each other confused

Andreas stepped forward "That's right. The boy is weak, but with our help he could become as strong as Fenris, like us, you just have to let us guide you "

Lauren began to worry, Andy was considering the idea and he did not like it at all "No, Andy will not go anywhere. He will not be like you "

Andy confronted her immediately "I do not need you to speak for me, what happens if I want to be like them?"

She looked at him surprised "A terrorist? Do you want to kill innocent people? You are not like that"

"Enough! Do not pretend that you care and do not pretend that you know me! "

The shaking of the room brought a smile to the twins

Unaware of her brother's outburst, the girl lost her balance and fell "I'm not faking and you know it!"

Andy knew it, he could feel it, but all those voices were right and Lauren kept reminding him every time he treated him like a child "Then stop treating me like a child! I can make my own decisions! "

Lauren stopped frustrated "If you want me to stop treating you like a child, stop acting like one! The mature Andy you pretend to be does not come close to the one who stopped me from killing all the innocents in Trask. "

"Back then I was stupid and cowardly. If I had not stopped you, none of this would be happening. Campbell would be dead along with all his research "

"Yes, so would Sonya, Clarice and all the rest in the building"

Andy snorted "It would not be a great loss, at least we would be free"

Lauren hit her desperate chest "Listen to what you say, you're sounding like them"

"It's not as bad as you think. Our great-grandparents could have been terrorists, but at least they tried to save the mutants, us, dad, grandfather. Like the Hellfire Club, try it now "

"That's a lie, it's just ideas that the Frost are putting in your head and you're leaving them"

"Those ideas did not get out of the forest and away from sentinel services"

Lauren stopped and took a step back "I'd rather be with them if escape means losing you in this way"

The woman's laughter echoed in the room "Are the Frost still alive? I see they have done a great job "

The brothers were in a jumble of emotions, they could no longer discern between them. Andy looked at the decision on his sister's face and knew nothing would change her mind. Lauren saw a small conflict inside her brother's eyes and gave her an ounce of hope to bring him back, if only he were not so stubborn.

Andreas decided that he already had enough "Boy! Do you accept our help or not? "

Andy turned his face to see his ancestor "What kind of help?"

"We will guide you boy and you will be stronger than you could imagine"

Lauren could not give up, not yet "Do not listen to them, it's a trap"

Andy grunted if he was stronger he could protect them, but his sister was right, he had suffered enough teasing in his life and turned the rest of his body "How do I know they are not trying to cheat me?"

Andrea stared at him. "Try us. Ask what you want to know "

Ask? What am I supposed to ask? How would that be enough evidence? Agh! He could feel Lauren's anxiety behind him, it was overwhelming, he could not concentrate, and this strange place made him restless. "D-Where are we? Some time ago they said that we noticed, but what do we notice? "

Andreas placed his hands behind his back "This place is a small corner created by his own conscience, or in other words, it is Fenris' home"

Andrea encircled her brother's arm before speaking "This is a place we discovered the first time we completely connected as Fenris. It is the physical place of our connection, of course they can not reach or leave alone, they must be both, after all as my brother said, it is Fenris' home "

Andreas nodded. "That's right. Surely they have already noticed that they can feel the emotions of the other, even thoughts if they are well projected, that is because in this place they stop being two different people, it is similar to the hive mind of the Frost, but it can only be here and they do not You can access this place. Over time they will learn to control it "

The younger brothers shuddered as they remembered what the Frost and their hive mind were capable of. They still had nightmares about all their experience in Trask.

Andrea, thinking that the shudder was a sign of recognition of the extent of her power, smiled wider "This, Andy, is what we are offering you"

The boys thought about this. It was tempting to have a safe place, but was it really safe? Andy was amazed by what they could achieve without training, just a few weeks with the twins and they would be unstoppable. How many mutant lives will be saved with Fenris? At last he would cease to be useless ... He would be strong enough to protect his new friends, his parents, his sister. If only she could see that what she does, what she wants, she wants for them, for her, the only pillar that really has been able to stand up after the disaster that is.

Lauren knew that this could be her best weapon to end this war, with the Hellfire club, but at what cost? If they could really control ... this. They would be unstoppable, they would help the underground, they could show the world that their powers are not different from learning a subject at school. It requires commitment and practice, a lot of practice. That each one decides what to do with this knowledge, after all those who created the atomic bomb did not do it with the purpose of harming anyone, neither did they. They just want to be accepted as they are. People somewhat special. But I could not do this alone

 _I need you_

Listening to this thought was overwhelming for both of you. The same words, the same need, the same goal, but with such different paths.

Andy shook his head "What do you propose?"

Lauren was impressed. Was her little brother willing to listen to them?

The twins noticed the girl's reluctance and looked at each other. They had no choice, the girl was stubborn and a danger if she managed to reach the boy before them. They nodded. They already knew what to do, they only had to play their cards well. These guys would learn that they should connect when they could.

Andreas cleared his throat "We propose you to be Fenris"

Andy was shocked "Me? Be Fenris? It's possible?"

Andrea looked at him innocent "During our stay in this place, good ours" pointed to the house on the other side of the door "We discovered that we could transfer, if necessary, our powers to the other"

Lauren opened her eyes "They're talking about suppressing my X gene. Why would I let them do that?"

The twins set a malevolent smile "We do not need your permission"

Without warning Andrea sent a wave of destruction towards Lauren, the girl fortunately reacted in time and created a shield in front of her, however the energy of the woman was greater than her brother and she shot off towards the wall.

Andreas created his own shield to avoid the shockwave and saw the boy fall surprised next to his sister, when he made sure he was okay he placed himself in front of her angry. The room staggered under his feet. His twin never lost control in this way, he was so rough, with so much potential, that he could not help but expand his smile "Look at yourself, boy, you are beginning to feel the effects"

Andrea managed to stabilize by holding onto the door frame "Just wait until we finish with her and you will be the most powerful mutant that exists"

Andy stood his ground despite the mini earthquake that caused "No! I will not let them hurt you! "

Andrea got angry when she heard that answer "I do not know what you're worried about, once we get rid of her, you'll have her powers and nobody outside of this place will remember her!"

"I will do it! She's my sister and I will not let them hurt her, not again! "

Lauren was somewhat sore from the blow, but the ferocity of her brother's feelings gave her energy and stifled her. Sometimes he forgets how intense his brother felt things. He stood up slowly with the help of the wall while listening to her defend it. Maybe if there was a hope. Her brother protected her from her heroes and refused to obtain the power they offered her, if that meant her safety. He noticed Andrea's movement and acted without thinking. He took Andy's hand and made the strongest shield he could. He resisted enough to stop the blow.

Andy felt his sister. He could feel complete once again and it enraptured and embittered him at the same time. I hated knowing that I could not protect her without her help. He watched the wave of energy disperse against Andreas's shield and took advantage of the moment when both of them staggered from the movement of the terrain. He stretched out his free hand sending the necessary energy to knock them out the door and see his 'Home' being replaced by darkness again.

The brothers were breathing agitated by what happened. Lauren felt the corners of her lips rise before what happened, her brother had refused to absolute power, for her "Thank you"

"You" Andy remembered the blow against the wall and looked at her worried "Are you okay?"

Nodding the girl let go of the wall now that her brother was calmer "Yes"

When she saw him sigh, she gave him a shy look. "I'm sorry that your heroes have let you down"

Andy looked at her confused "They are not my heroes"

"But you said that ..."

"That I'm proud to be a Von Strucker, not that they were my heroes"

Lauren was deflated by his words, still clinging to that apparent pride of being related to terrorists who tried to kill her. Andy felt stronger than before his sister and sighed "Lauren you must understand me, no matter how hard I try, I can not deny being related to them, neither do you. I can not deny that what they did was not entirely correct. But denying who I am has never been a good thing either and it is what I am, I will not change because some people are uncomfortable to know. "

"I do not ask you to change. But thinking about all the damage they did, what we've done, because of Fenris makes me nauseous. Forgive me, but I can never be proud to carry all these deaths on my back "

Andy nodded slowly. "And forgive me, but I can not let anything happen to them, much less if I can do something to prevent it. No matter the cost, I can not afford to carry their deaths on my back "

They remained silent. The room suddenly did not feel as good as when they woke up. The heat of the other's hand was too much in their own. The time to find their own way was approaching and they did not know if they could stand it, but the only thing they agreed on was that they would not stop trying. The only truth that his great-grandparents said was that this felt right, but they also felt like something kept pushing them in opposite directions.

Lauren wiped her face with her free hand, as did her brother and could not resist the small laugh that escaped her mouth as she noted the irony of how distinctly similar they were. "They said that this place was created by connecting and that they could come or go alone "he breathed deep to stabilize his voice" Maybe if we try we can go back "

Andy nodded and looked at his connected hands. "So what? Should we just think of something special like the change of space around us or something like that? "

Lauren thought for a moment. "Or could we deal with the door?"

The boys suppressed their smile and walked to the door. They were only one mind at this time, maybe it was because of the room or because they were holding hands on it, but it was certain that now they did not need to Von Strucker came through the door and disappeared around. They could not cross alone, but together they were not alone, even if they thought otherwise. Prepared for what might happen, they crossed the threshold of the door and everything went black once more.

This time, when they opened their eyes, they did not recognize their surroundings. It was darker than usual and were they moving? Blinking and parting to notice their closeness, they tried to remember what happened. They looked at each other and grimaced when everything came back to them. Sentinel services, the raid, gaining time for the subways that fled through a hole in the safe, the room, the Von Strucker, their decision, everything. They looked away from each other, uncomfortable. They were in an old truck, sitting in the back and felt miles away.

The movement alerted their parents that they were engaged in a deep conversation minutes before and were received by uncomfortable hugs given the position.

Caitlin laughed contentedly "I'm so happy that they're fine children"

Reed hugged his wife to avoid crushing them with their incessant mimes "We were worried. When the building disappeared after that bright light and you arrived with us just before fainting, we were worried "

Lauren gave them the try of a smile "How long were we out?"

Caitlin stroked her daughter's hair "Only one hour, but when we saw what happened we thought that something had happened to them in the explosion of those bloodhounds. It was the most powerful we have seen "

Lauren moved her nervous lip and looked out of the corner of her eye at her strangely calm brother. Andy recognized her look and could not help but feel his blood begin to boil when he noticed how scared Lauren was of his powers after all that had happened. He looked away and looked at his parents "That was not the hounds, it was us"

His parents, and all who listened to their conversation, were surprised. Did these little children have done that? Reed remembered the words of his father and understood what he meant when he asked him to protect the world from his children, a sense of panic and fear invaded him. "Why did you destroy the whole building?"

Lauren shook her head "We could not help it, it was like the first time, only now we let it happen"

Andy nodded. "We only showed those fans how real combined power was. We introduce you to Fenris "

The name echoed in the truck and everyone who knew about the original Fenris shuddered. Nobody said anything for a few minutes.

The boys felt a small void where the presence of the other had been before, but there was nothing they could do. The implications of that name made them uneasy, but after all that was said there was nothing they could do for the other right now. Andy tried to block the voices in his head, while promising to get a way to be stronger without the help of his sister, no matter how painful it was, he would not be intimidated again. Maybe a lot of people are trying to manipulate him these days, but the decision was his and he would choose what would help him to protect those who matter to him, to protect her. Lauren clung to the hope that her brother was not completely lost to appease his restless mind, which kept reminding him of all the deaths he had caused, in Trask and with Fenris. Maybe if he managed to bring his brother back, to make him see reason, he would find the peace he urgently needed, which both of them needed. He was the only one who would understand what he feels ... If there was only one way.

Caitlin looked at her children, Lauren looked at the floor of the van in conflict and Andy looked into space with a look of steel, not allowing anyone to know what he thought. Sometimes they looked at each other, but it did not last more than a few seconds before they returned to the same self-absorbed state. I could not imagine what happened inside that building, but I had a bad feeling about it, I just hoped I was wrong, I could not bear to lose them, to any of them.


End file.
